How AI is Measuring the Impact of COVID-19 on Construction

OxBlue, a professional construction camera service, is using artificial intelligence (AI) to measure the effects of COVID-19 on construction across the United States.

OxBlue‘s construction data will be updated on a regular basis as this dynamic situation develops. Unlike many macroeconomic indicators that tend to lag, AI is being used to determine the activity level based on near real-time field data, created by measuring job site activity and comparing it to previous milestones. The initial analysis covers all 50 states and more than 100 metropolitan areas. The report uses anonymized data from over 150,000 unique images and thousands of unique construction projects.

Though previously unannounced, OxBlue’s AI capabilities for measuring construction activity levels had already been validated based on field trials. The tool was originally developed to assist OxBlue clients in understanding construction activity on their projects. As the crisis began to worsen, OxBlue began analyzing data at a national level in order to share timely and actionable data with the construction industry.

“As the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread across the United States, the construction industry faces incredible challenges and difficult decisions,” said Chandler McCormack, CEO of OxBlue. “Because we’re business owners in the trade ourselves, we understand that it’s critical for companies to be able to separate the noise from the facts and make data-driven decisions.”